6/8/2020 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly substantial basis exists to believe that Barit received her full salaries for the entire duration of her original contract, or from July 23, 1999 to July 23, 2001. The NLRC further opined that to make the agency liable for Barit's alleged unpaid and underpaid wages on the sole ground that it failed to submit copies of payslips and payrolls is unfair as the agency appears to have taken all available means to secure the necessary documents from Barit's employer to dispute her claims. The NLRC stressed that the labor arbiter should have considered other factors in resolving the case. The records support the NLRC's appreciation of the merits of Barit's claim. As early as September 28, 2002, the agency inquired with Barit's employer how she was faring in Saudi Arabia, in relation particularly to the case brought against her by the Saudi authorities and to her unpaid salaries. [29] The inquiry was prompted by Barit's mother's inquiry about her situation in Saudi Arabia. On October 3, 2002, the agency received an answer from Hameed [30] advising the agency's President, Edward G. Cue, that Barit had left his residence and was discovered by the Saudi police to be living with Ambrosio and that Hameed could not intervene as she committed "a crime related to martial (sic) affair." [31] Hameed also informed Cue that Barit's passport and air ticket, and the balance of the money due her were handed over to the authorities, pursuant to the law of Saudi Arabia. Additionally, Hameed intimated that if necessary, the agency could seek verification from the Philippine Embassy in Saudi Arabia about what he reported to Cue. On November 15, 2003, the agency received another letter [32] from Hameed in response to Cue's overseas call regarding Barit's unpaid salary. Hameed again informed Cue that "[t]here is no more pending salary with us, all her personal belongings were turned over to the police as this is the law here in Saudi Arabia." Hameed also told Cue that Barit finished her two-year contract and she could not have signed another contract with him if she had not been paid her past salaries. On November 21, 2004, Hameed again wrote Cue [33] informing the agency official that as he said in his previous letters, "everything has been paid to her" and that the Saudi authorities will not release her from jail unless everything is settled, for the Saudi government is very strict when it comes to unpaid salaries. In light of this exchange between the agency and Hameed, and the real reason why Barit left Hameed's employ, we are as convinced as the NLRC that she had been paid her salaries in full for her first employment contract (which the agency facilitated), from July 23, 1999 to July 23, 2001. The argument that absent the payslips or payrolls, the agency failed to present proof of payment of Barit's claim should be viewed in the context of the realities of domestic service. The relationship between Hameed and his family, on the one hand, and Barit, on the other hand, was largely confined within Hameed's household. It was not as structured as the relationship obtaining in an office or in an industrial plant. There was very little or no paperwork at all, even on wage payments. As the NLRC opined: elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/32168 6/9